What is predictive medicine?

Predictive medicine, an emerging area of prevention, focuses on predicting the risk of diseases such as cancer or cardiovascular disease for healthy, symptom-free people. The aim is to prevent illnesses through lifestyle changes or preventive therapies. Prof. Dr. Olga Golubnitschaja, an expert in predictive medicine at the University of Bonn, underlines the importance of so-called 3P medicine: predictive, preventive and personalized. This method makes it possible to address health risks at an early stage and prevent reversible damage before serious illnesses occur.

‍

Comprehensive biomarkers and liquid biopsy

Dr. Golubnitschaja highlights that predictive diagnoses must be reliable so as not to unnecessarily burden those affected. Although genetic testing is valuable, analyzing genes alone is often not enough. Other biomarkers, such as micro-RNA or certain molecules in the blood, are required. The so-called “liquid biopsy”, an analysis of body fluids, is already being used by cancer patients to determine the risks of relapse. However, there is still a lot of development needed for the preventive early diagnosis of healthy people.

‍

Prevention with a vision

One innovative approach is to identify health vulnerabilities such as Flammer syndrome (FS). This syndrome is characterized by symptoms such as low blood pressure, cold hands, and migraines and may indicate subsequent risks of glaucoma, pregnancy complications, or cancer metastases. Family doctors could use simple questionnaires to identify affected people at an early stage before targeted biomarker analyses follow.

‍

Another example of predictive medicine is a US study that uses antibodies in healthy people to delay Alzheimer's. However, Golubnichaya criticizes the lack of pre-selection of vulnerable people, as this approach is inefficient and expensive. In her opinion, predictive medicine must be individualized and made cost-effective.

‍

The future of predictive medicine

The implementation of comprehensive predictive medicine poses challenges, including ethical issues and costs. Golubnichaya suggests starting with cost-effective methods, such as questionnaires, which are analyzed using smart algorithms. This could enable effective screening that is tailored to individual risks without immeasurable costs. However, multidisciplinary advice, including psychological support, is essential for successful use.

‍

Overview of the potential and challenges of predictive medicine

• ‍Importance for healthcare: Predictive medicine could not only positively influence individual lives, but also relieve the burden on the healthcare system in the long term. In many cases, prevention is more cost-effective than treating chronic diseases. However, establishing such approaches would require increased cooperation between science, politics and industry.

• ‍Technological advancements: The use of artificial intelligence (AI) and big data could revolutionize predictive medicine. AI algorithms could analyze large amounts of data to provide more accurate risk predictions, while wearable technologies such as wearables could continuously provide health data.

• ‍Social acceptance: It remains a challenge to win people over to take personal responsibility in prevention. Educational campaigns and easy-to-understand health information could help raise awareness and reduce prejudices or fears.

• ‍Ethics and data protection: Handling sensitive health data requires high security standards. In addition, predictive medicine raises ethical questions, such as whether and how genetic information should be used or what consequences risk predictions could have on a person's quality of life and insurability.

• ‍Global access: Predictive medicine could be adopted more quickly in countries with a high level of medical care. But especially in regions with limited access to health resources, their potential would be enormous, which requires new financing models and international cooperation.

‍

Predictive medicine is still in its infancy, but it has the potential to become a paradigm shift in healthcare — towards a proactive, individualized approach. Through targeted prevention, people could not only live longer, but also stay healthy longer. However, this requires more than just a rethink and stronger support for research and practice. It also requires an effort by society as a whole that goes beyond technological innovation and takes ethical, economic and social aspects into account.